Post navigation

Highlights of 6/16/16 school board meeting

It’s summer, and this month’s board meeting reflected that – board business is generally routine in the summer months. However, we had a couple of pieces of great news, including teacher DeAnn O’Toole being recognized (bullet 1); the first cohort of the 6th grade advanced math program is reaching senior year (bullet 5); and the Success Academy was approached by KnowledgeWorks for a grant (bullet 6).

I will not be at the July board meeting; it’s vacation month, and the meeting was moved to the second Thursday to accommodate the majority of board members’ schedules.

Have a wonderful summer!

Pattison 4th grade teacher DeAnn O’Toole was recognized for being named the National Association of Geoscience Teachers (NAGT)’s Ohio Outstanding Earth Science Teacher of 2016 – congratulations, DeAnn! This award is given for “exceptional contributions to the stimulation of interest in the Earth Sciences at the pre-college level.” Any teacher or other K-12 educator who covers a significant amount of earth science content with their students is eligible. DeAnn has a true passion for Earth Science and finds many ways to pass this passion on to her students.

The 2015-16 fiscal year is rapidly coming to a close. The district’s fiscal goes from July 1–June 30. Treasurer Debbie Caudle reported the budget is on track, despite several revenue items that come from the state being delayed until next fiscal.

The district accepted two donations this month: $445 in photo supplies donated by Virginia Cox to MHS; and $470 worth of mulch donated by Bzak Landscaping & Garden Center to the high school stadium. Thank you both for supporting our public schools!

Minna Espy has been hired as the new Director of the Milford Preschool. Congratulations & welcome, Minna!

The board approved a textbook for AP Calculus BC, the second calculus class available to high school students. Next year will be the first year Milford HS offers this class, as the first cohort 6th grade advanced math program is now reaching their senior year. This program was implemented six years ago to allow talented and motivated math students the chance to advance by two grades instead of one. We will have one section of the class next year, but it is likely to grow to two the following year, if the majority of eligible students choose to take it.

The Success Academy was awarded aKnowledgeWorks grant to help investigate new approaches to enhance their success. With this initial grant, several team members will be sent to investigate other success models. There is no commitment after that, but we will be eligible to apply for additional funding of up to several hundred thousand dollars. KnowledgeWorks approached Milford after seeing the work the Success Academy has already done, and hearing about plans for the future.